This invention relates generally to the transfer of heat away from a heat generating object, e.g. active semiconductor device, to prevent undesired heat buildup at the device. More specifically, the invention relates to compliant sheet-like gaskets that engage a device to be cooled and facilitate the effective transfer of heat away from the device.
An increasing number of electronic circuits utilize integrated circuits (ICs) or active semiconductor devices to perform a variety of functions. As the density of such devices on wafers and/or printed circuit boards increase, the heat generated from the devices also increases. This gives rise to the use of heat sinks to transfer this heat away from the devices in order to limit the temperature at which the devices operate. One type of a traditional heat sink consists of a block of metal with a flat surface mounted to the device and an opposing surface with an irregular surface, e.g. fins, to maximize the surface area exposed to air or other environment to which the heat is to be transferred. However, with the amount of heat generated per square area for such devices increasing due to increased density of devices, there is a need for improved structures that more efficiently transfer heat away from heat generating devices.